VAIDS office writes tax defaulters

The Voluntary Assets and Income Declaration Scheme (VAIDS) office in the Federal Ministry of Finance has identified thousands of tax defaulters across the country and written to them requesting compliance before the expiration of the amnesty period on March 31.

According to the VAIDS office, the defaulters, mostly high net-worth individuals, were identified through transaction, income and assets data obtained from a variety of sources. Following the identification process, the office communicated with them via nudge letters to draw attention to their defective tax status.

The letters, it added, had elicited positive responses from the recipients, with many of them visiting or phoning the VAIDS office to request for more information on declaration and compliance.

“More letters are currently being sent out to other identified defaulters based on transaction data obtained from the Corporate Affairs Commission, Federal Inland Revenue Service, Central Bank of Nigeria, Nigerian Communications Commission, state governments, Nigeria Customs Service, land registries as well as payment platforms such as the Government Integrated Financial and Management Information System, and Remita, in the case of tax-defaulting companies,” the VAIDS office said in a statement on Thursday.

The scheme, which came into being last July, is a tax amnesty programme that provides a time-limited opportunity for defaulters to regularise their tax status. The Federal Government is offering, as part of the amnesty, freedom from penalties on owed taxes and tax audits as well as freedom from prosecution for taxpayers who truthfully declare their liabilities. The scheme also offers defaulters the chance of spreading payment over a three-year period.

It is not yet late to take advantage of VAIDS. To help you, CALL 08023183590 or REPLY to this mail.